European Style Potato Pancakes Recipe

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These European Style Potato Pancakes are a very popular dish throughout Europe. In Poland, they are known as ‘Placki Ziemniaczane,’ in Germany as ‘Kartoffelpuffer,’ in the Czech Republic as ‘Bramboracky,’ and of course, every Jewish deli refers to them as ‘Potato Latkes.’

This Potato Pancake recipe is super easy. The old fashion way of making them required shredding by hand. However for this recipe, there’s no shredding of potatoes involved….the blender does the job for you.

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Potato Pancakes (European Style) on a blue plate stock up with dollop of sour cream and scallions.

Potato Pancakes – Very Popular Dish Across Europe

I grew up in Poland where Potato Pancakes (Placki Zimeniaczane) are among the most popular dishes. And I know for a fact that Kartoffelpuffer (German Potato Panaces) and Bramboracky (Czech Potato Pancakes) are equally popular in their respective countries. Every kid I know loves them!

Yet, in Poland the kids usually favor them sprinkled with some sugar. Although this is a really popular way of serving Potato Pancakes, it wasn’t really my cup of tea. I don’t know why, but I’ve always preferred savory over sweet, so I like my Potato Pancakes with sour cream and scallions.

I also love them as a side dish. See below suggestions on what to serve these best Potato Pancakes with.

Overhead photo of potato pancakes with sour cream and scallions on top.

How to Make Potato Pancakes

The worst part of making Potato Pancakes was shredding the potatoes and the onions and cloves of garlic. It was time-consuming, hard, and also dangerous (you could shred your knuckles). I’ve since found a much easier way to make them. And their taste and texture are still phenomenal. I use a simple blender.

For the Ingredients you will need:

  • About 3 cups of cubed potatoes (yellow or white potatoes are best for this recipe);
  • Half of a medium sized Sweet Onion;
  • 1 garlic clove;
  • 1 egg;
  • 1/3 cup of flour;
  • And some salt & pepper.

Super Easy European Style Potato Pancakes

Easy Steps to Make Potato Pancakes

Step 1: Add potatoes to the blender and blend for a few minutes, until they release their juices.

Step 2: Then add onions and garlic and blend for a few more minutes.

Step 3: Once it’s completely blended, pour the mixture through a thin mesh strainer and let it sit for about 10 minutes. You want to get rid of the extra moisture.

Super Easy European Style Potato Pancakes

Step 4: After 10 minutes, pour the mixture into a bowl and add egg, flour, salt, and pepper, then mix together.

Step 5: Heat up a little bit of oil in a pan and fry up a test pancake.

Super Easy European Style Potato Pancakes

Sep 6: Flip it and fry it on the other side.

Step 7: Then take it out and place it on a paper towel, dry out and taste it. If the pancake needs more salt or pepper, you should adjust seasoning and fry up the remaining pancakes.

Super Easy European Style Potato Pancakes

 

And here they are…beautiful, golden brown, scrumptious Placki Ziemniaczane, Kartoffelpuffer, Bamboracky or Potato Latkas. Can you resist them?

What to serve Potato Pancakes with?

As I mentioned above you can sprinkle them with sugar and serve with sour cream, or for a savory version sprinkle them with some scallions. You can also serve them as a side dish. Here are a couple of my suggestions:

Stock of German or Polish Potato Pancakes on a blue plate with forks

Equipment Needed To Make Potato Pancakes

Here are a couple of items that are needed to make these pancakes. You probably have most of these items already at home:

  • Blender, to process potatoes, onions, and garlic;
  • Strainer, to release the moisture from potatoes;
  • Measuring Cup, to measure the potatoes and the flour;
  • Glass Bowl, to mix the batter in;
  • Frying pan, to fry up your pancakes.

Other Famous European Recipes to Try

European Style Potato Pancakes

European Style Potato Pancakes

These European Style Potato Pancakes are a very popular dish across Europe. In Poland, they are known as Placki Ziemniaczane, in Germany as Kartoffelpuffer, in Czech Republic Bramboracky as well as in every Jewish deli, known as "Potato Latkes".
This Potato Pancakes recipe is super easy. The old fashion way of making them required shredding by hand. There is no shredding of potatoes involved. The blender does the job for you. 
5 from 2 votes
Print Pin Rate
Course: Side Dish
Cuisine: Czech, European, German, Polish
Prep Time: 15 minutes
Cook Time: 10 minutes
Straining time: 10 minutes
Total Time: 25 minutes
Servings: 3
Calories: 284kcal
Author: Edyta

Ingredients

  • 3 cups Potatoes Cubed, yellow or white
  • 1/2 Onions Sweet, chopped in big cubes
  • 1 clove Garlic
  • 1/3 cup Flour
  • 1 Egg
  • 1 teaspoon Salt
  • Freshly ground black pepper
  • 2 tbsp Cooking Oil for frying
  • Sour cream optional for serving
  • Scallions optional for serving

Instructions

  • Place the potatoes in a blender and blend for 2 minutes until they release moisture
  • Add onions and garlic and blend for another minute
  • Pour the mixture through a thin mesh strainer and let it sit for 10 minutes
  • After 10 minutes pour the mixture into the bowl
  • Add egg, flour, salt, and pepper and mix together
  • Heat up a tablespoon of oil and fry up a test pancake
  • Taste it and adjust seasoning of the mixture if needed
  • Add oil as needed and fry up the remaining of the pancakes

Notes

From this recipe, I made about 10 pancakes. I calculated per person as a serving. If you need more, double the ingredients.

Nutrition

Calories: 284kcal | Carbohydrates: 38g | Protein: 8g | Fat: 11g | Saturated Fat: 1g | Cholesterol: 54mg | Sodium: 818mg | Potassium: 929mg | Fiber: 5g | Vitamin A: 80IU | Vitamin C: 25.6mg | Calcium: 75mg | Iron: 7.7mg
Tried this recipe?Show me @eatingeuropean or tag #eatingeuropean!

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This post was originally published on March 6, 2016, and since then was updated to provide additional information.

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11 Comments

  1. My mom use to put something in the spuds so they didn’t darken, do you know what that is? How many spuds equal 3 cups of spuds. She use to fry them in bacon grease. She couldn’t fry them fast enough for us. Do you have a recipe for cabbage soup?

  2. 5 stars
    Thanks for sharing. Delicious and satisfying. I agree about It being more of a salty dish. I didn’t have sour cream at the moment so I had mine w Greek yogurt and fresh cheese. And sausage on a side.
    A tip if It happens to be still too moist when you cook It, is to pour the portion that you are about to cook in a Little strainer while you are cooking the First pancake and then throw It on the pan straight from the strainer and do the same w the next portion. It worked perfect for me as here It is a very humid weather.

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